The Invitation: Hope Part II

Already my house smells like Christmas. My dear friend, Ginger, makes sure every Christmas season I have a candle to usher in an appropriate yuletide aroma to bless my house. This year it’s Balsam fir. Not too strong, not too sweet, just light enough to hint that Christmas is indeed coming. My 9-ft. tree that my Australian cousin asked if it required engineering to erect is fully decorated. My favorite Peruvian nativity is lit up and because I live in South Carolina now but am from Michigan, snowmen must hide out in a few strategic places to remind me how much I love them but hate shoveling what their genetic DNA is. I made my first loaf of banana bread, and Jim had our cards printed. We are preparing as best we can at our home for the holiday. We both love Christmas and gladly accept the December invitation to begin decorating and preparing. Don’t forget the music! We are already playing our favorite Christmas tunes as often as we can, and our Christmas Eve menu has been planned by my daughter and I. We did that Thanksgiving eve —we are passionate about our preparation. 

Considering all this as I began writing the Advent series, I wanted to meditate on Advent itself. The word Advent means “arrival.” When I look at the scriptures, it is easy to identify the person who was both prophetic and passionate about the arrival of the Messiah. A guy known as a preparer… John, the Baptist. John, the first cousin of Jesus was called to participate in preparation even in conception as his mom, Elizabeth, was instructed how John was already being prepared (Luke 1:15).

The invitation to prepare came even in the womb as John, the unborn prophet, participated in prenatal worship. I think of today’s modern miracle technology of Ultrasound and realize that if Elizabeth had been able to access it, we could have witnessed John leap and raise his hands in reverence to the unborn Christ in Mary’s womb when Mary entered the room. It reminds me as I reflect on this early activity, how important worship is to prepare our hearts for any encounter with God. Without worship during Advent and Christmas, all I will do is bake, cook and decorate. But the celebration won’t linger and transform me. Without worship, I am declining the Holy Spirit’s invitation to have my hope restored and for sure I am headed away from authentic preparation and will end up settling for some superficial commercial imitation of what Christmas really signifies. Any real joy can’t materialize if I don’t make proper preparation to celebrate God’s greatest gift, Salvation. And without Salvation, without Jesus who brought it to us, there is no hope.

John knew this and proclaimed this as he called people to repentance and encouraged folks to prepare their hearts for the arrival of the Messiah. The Lamb, as John announced would take away the sins of the world. John also offered early discipleship training by directing folks to make the paths straight for the Lord. This is another invitation to participate in the hope that only Christ can bring. Preparing the way, making it straight is an act of a hoping heart. What does making the path straight mean? It means to align ourselves with God’s purpose. It means removing the obstacles in our lives that would hinder us from fully consecrating ourselves to the presence Of Christ and His redeeming work in our hearts and lives. When I do this, I open myself to be fully prepared by the Holy Spirit to worship. True worship of God ushers in refreshed hope to my discouraged and faint heart. It reminds me that Only God is worthy and all other sources that I depend on are fleeting and will fail. 

While worship is an act of the heart, making the path straight, requires me to align my will. Removing obstacles that would limit my capacity to be filled with Christ’s love is a challenge. Things like materialism (especially this time of year), grudges, hate, apathy, love of self and just doing what pleases me or strikes my fancy can cause me to invest energy in the wrong kind of preparation. While my home is fully prepared for the holiday, if I am not careful, I can be lulled into missing the preparation of my heart the Holy Spirit is longing to do. I can crave Silent Holy nights all season but miss the peace and goodwill that can flood my heart and manifest in my spirit if I don’t make myself available for preparation and get at making the path straight for the Lord. Making the path straight is the act of a hopeful heart that recognizes I need Jesus every day, all day and that I am willing to surrender my sinfulness for His holiness. It is hanging the welcome sign across my whole self-inviting the joy and transforming love Christ brought to earth that first Christmas.Making the path straight is ripping open the gift of salvation personally addressed to me and embracing it passionately, proclaiming to the world I have received the best gift ever! 

As we travel on Advent, let us remember on our most discouraged days, hope has already arrived. John was the first prophet to speak in over 400 years to answer the call as the voice crying in the wilderness to prepare and make straight the path of the Lord. Like John, I am called as a follower to proclaim that Christ is alive and will return. I can accept the invitation to hope by sharing it with others. I can be light in dark places. I can prepare and spend this season focusing on worshipping the Messiah and allow the joy of the celebration of Christmas to not just fill my home but my heart. I can make the path straight for the Lord this year, a single step at a time.